Fifteen-minute recess freestyle rope skipping enhances classroom attention in junior high school students in the context of healthy school development: mechanisms and implications

In the context of healthy school development and the policy mandating 15-min recess physical activity for middle school students, this study employed a longitudinal quasi-experimental design to investigate the effects of 15-min recess freestyle rope skipping on middle school students' classroom attention and emotional indicators. Based on grade level and activity format (individual practice vs. group cooperation), a total of 160 students, 80 boys and 80 girls, aged 13.9 to 14.5 years, from grades 8 and 9 at a middle school in Shijiazhuang were selected and divided into four groups. A 16-week intervention involving individual vs. group freestyle rope skipping for 15 min per session was conducted. Students' recess immediate emotions, classroom academic emotions, and classroom attention were measured using validated self-report scales, specifically the Exercise-Induced Mood Scale, the Classroom Academic Emotion Scale, and the Classroom Attention Scale, at three time points (pre-intervention, mid-intervention, and post-intervention). Data were analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA, correlation analysis, and mediation analysis. The results indicated that classroom attention significantly increased from 65.54 (pre-intervention) to 74.68 (post-intervention) across all groups. Classroom academic emotions and recess immediate emotions also exhibited significant changes over time, with significant time × group interaction effects, suggesting that the trajectories of change differed by grade level and activity format. Correlation analysis revealed that improvements in recess immediate emotions and classroom academic emotions were significantly positively correlated with increases in classroom attention, with the strongest correlation found between classroom academic emotions and classroom attention changes ( r = 0.450, p < 0.001). Mediation analysis showed that classroom academic emotions significantly mediated the relationship between activity format and changes in classroom attention (indirect effect = 3.098, 95% CI [1.179, 5.525]), whereas the chain mediation pathway (recess immediate emotions → classroom academic emotions → classroom attention) was not significant. This study provides evidence that 15-min recess freestyle rope skipping is associated with improvements in middle school students' classroom attention and improve their emotional states, with the intervention effects moderated by grade level and activity format. This study provides empirical evidence for the fields of physical activity, emotion, and attention, and offers practical guidance for optimizing recess physical activities and promoting healthy school development in secondary schools.